


the raven and the boy

by Anonymous



Category: Otherfaith Religion & Lore, Religion & Lore - Ambiguous Fandom
Genre: Animal Death, Crisis of Faith, Death, Deathfic, Deities, Fictional Religion & Theology, Folklore, Gen, Goddesses, Grief/Mourning, Having Faith, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Loss of Parent(s), Original Character Death(s), Original Fiction, Original Mythology, Past Character Death, Religion, loosely based on my interpretation of the raven queen frm dnd
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-15
Updated: 2018-10-15
Packaged: 2019-08-02 12:55:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 321
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16305632
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/
Summary: "everyone dies," the raven said. "why should they be any different?"





	the raven and the boy

the raven watched as a young boy stood at his parents' grave, tears streaking down his dirt-stained cheeks. his shoulders shook as he cried. she cocked her head and hopped down from her perch on the willow tree, landing quietly beside him.

"why do you cry?" she asked.

"it's not fair," the boy answered. he wiped his nose on his sleeve. "they shouldn't have died."

"everyone dies," the raven said. "why should they be any different?"

"because they still had so much life in them." he wrapped his arms around himself. "and because i still need them."

the raven turned to look at the grave. "i can't deny that you need them," she said, "or that they had life in them. but all things with life must also have death at some point."

"it's not fair." he sat in the grass and rubbed angrily at his eyes. "life gives so much, while death only takes and takes."

the raven laughed. "you humans are funny. you don't even realize how much death does for you."

the boy looked up and glared at the raven. "like  _what_?"

"the food you eat," the raven said simply. "the wood you've used to build your homes and your toys. even your leather boots. all of those things were once full of life. and then they die, and you use them to help yourselves live."

"that's  _life_ helping life. you're still a liar."

"alright, how about this?" the raven plucked a worm from the dirt, then flew up and placed it atop the gravestone. "when living things become dead things, you put them in the ground. worms and bugs eat the dead things and create fertile soil where you grow your food."

the boy considered that for a moment, picking up the worm from the gravestone and putting it back on the ground.

"life breeds death, it's true," the raven admitted. "but from death also comes life."


End file.
